One aspect of a proposed plan would shed a new light on the taxpayer-funded program known as Ready to Work to assist those impacted by layoffs find new work.
SAN ANTONIO — As federal cuts persist nationwide, San Antonio City Council members and the mayor are preparing for the future to help those impacted.
District 4 City Councilwoman Dr. Adriana Rocha Garcia and District 8 City Councilman Manny Pelaez, both of whom are running for mayor, submitted a policy proposal on March 3 that addresses the issue of federal cuts impacting local residents.
The council consideration request calls for the creation of the Re-employment Assistance for Federal Talent (RAFT) program.
“We want to make sure that we’re prepared, that we have a Plan B for these people, because they’re residents of San Antonio, they’re our constituents and we need to take care of them,” Rocha Garcia said.
“There are thousands of San Antonians who are employed by the federal government whose kids go to the same school as my kids do,” Pelaez added.
The proposal calls for recruiting “the most qualified federal workers” and expediting their application and onboarding process.
RAFT also would prioritize the hiring of federal workers who were laid off to fill job vacancies within the City of San Antonio.
Rocha Garcia recently met with a mother and son who work for the federal government.
“She was telling me we don’t know what’s going to happen. Every single day we come and we go to work and we come back and we’re just worried that the next day we’re not going to have a job,” she said.
One major aspect of the proposal calls for federal employee-centric training offered through the Ready to Work program, which is the taxpayer-funded workforce development venture going back to 2020.
“What we’re saying is, let’s engage with the employers who participated or who maybe took a pass at the Ready to Work program because they needed someone at that higher level of certification,” Rocha Garcia said.
Mayor Ron Nirenberg expressed his support for RAFT while addressing other urgent priorities related to assisting laid off federal employees in a memo addressed to City Manager Erik Walsh.
“I am requesting the Re-employment Assistance for Federal Talent (RAFT) CCR proposal and the following priorities to be advanced immediately to meet the urgent needs of San Antonio workers,” Nirenberg said in the correspondence.
The memo also tackles the broader impacts of the Trump administration’s actions:
“The White House is moving at a rapid pace to make sweeping changes to the supported personnel and programs of federal agencies,” he wrote. “While we know that non-military federal employees comprise a considerable portion of our local workforce, an even greater portion of our region’s community is being impacted the downstream disruption of critical services and funding. These effects are becoming more widespread, placing further strains on our social safety nets.”
Nirenberg’s memo details a need for several city departments and nonprofit wraparound service providers to work together in assisting federal workers who’ve been affected by the layoffs.
Pelaez stressed that whether it’s through providing job training for those interested in the public or private sectors, it will take participation from multiple entities, including universities, nonprofits and employers from various industries.
“I think we got to pull from all levers,” he said. “There are thousands of San Antonians who are employed by the federal government whose kids go to the same school as my kids do. It blows wind in the sales of our effort and with the mayor behind this I think we’re going to help a lot of people.”